I thank you and appreciate you, my Facebook friends.
Like many other people, I tried to keep my Facebook postings mostly politics-free. It’s not easy to do that anymore, because there are so many things going on, so many perspectives to share, and so much passion involved. I know we don’t all agree on issues, but I still think that diversity of thoughts and beliefs, and the ability to compassionately express them, are some of our greatest strengths as a country.
Even though many of my Facebook friends see things from a totally different point of view than I do, you haven’t dropped me and I haven’t dropped you. I don’t plan to drop friends who think differently than me, and I hope we remain friends.

I received positive support on this posting from friends at all levels of the political spectrum (in the USA). Many of us realize we likely won’t be changing other peoples’ minds: even people we care for, even with ideas we vehemently support or oppose. But we are in this big boat together, and will need to make landings together along the journey. We can keep our own ideals, while being courteous and respectful to others, while delivering and receiving matter kindly, while listening to diverse thoughts and opinions. Along the way we might learn something that will help us find solutions to our current problems and impasses.

I believe in sharing as much or as little as we care to about our political beliefs on social media, while bringing our authentic selves to the conversation. (As I say this, I truly appreciate I can do so because of my right to freedom of speech, and I recognize that not all people have this privilege.) Most importantly, we can make the effort to be respectful, even when we don’t agree.